Wilson sisters still earning fans' affection

Published 9:00 pm, Sunday, March 17, 2002

Many who fell in love with Heart in the late '70s greeted the duo with unabated affection Friday night when Ann and Nancy Wilson performed an acoustic concert at the Moore Theater.

The sold-out benefit raised $25,000 for FareStart, a job-training program for the homeless of Seattle.

The stage design by Marie Wilson combined the hominess of Christmas morning with a romantic, candlelit Valentine's evening.

It was the perfect setting for an intimate reunion with two of Seattle's best-loved hometown girls.

"We are trembling on the verge of once again becoming Heart," singer Ann Wilson told the crowd. With a new album in the works, the Wilson sisters are about to close the book on their life as an acoustic duo and hit the road once again as a full-on rock 'n' roll band.

It was clear from the first song, "Angels," from 1982's "Private Audition," that the qualities that made Heart such a special group are still very much intact.

Ann's voice is as strong and distinctive as ever, with an upper register that is as chilling as it is passionate.

Nancy has always been one of the great unsung heroes of the rhythm guitar, blending classic rock licks into harmonically sophisticated chord voicings.

From the hard-line frenzy of "City's Burning" to the mandolin drone of "Daddy's War," she gave an authoritative demonstration on how to rock acoustically.

The 90-minute set included classic Heart tunes such as "Dog and Butterfly," "Back to Avalon" and "These Dreams," as well as "Sand," from their acoustic side project, "The Lovemongers."

Introducing a song from her solo album, Nancy said, "I went to the ocean to write songs and find out who I was. Then I got sick of myself and came home."

Her voice, with its soft elasticity, provided a warm complement to Ann's soulful virtuosity.

The duo ended with two of their most enduring hits. "Crazy on You" remains the song for which Ann's voice seems to have been created, and Nancy redefined the "unplugged" concept with her scorching "Barracuda" arrangement.

A three-song encore began with "Even It Up," from 1980's "Bebe Le Strange," featuring Ann on bass guitar, and included some of Nancy's gently finger-picked contributions to husband Cameron Crowe's film "Jerry Maguire."

British singer William Topley opened with a set of rhythm-and-blues-flavored rock numbers that, despite some engaging moments, never quite caught fire with the crowd.

Drawing from his new release, "Feasting With Panthers," the former lead singer of The Blessing hit the occasional stride with his Van Morrison-ish rave-ups, but failed to transform the generic material into anything special.